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December 07, 2004
Student says she was misled about quality of Spanish program
CLA senior Marcela Sanchez came to Hamline two years ago as a transfer student from Guadalajara, Mexico, and she said she’s disappointed with the experience she has had in the Spanish department.
“I don’t know what [Hamline is] doing, offering a Spanish major,” she said. “The program is too weak.”
She said administration and professors led her to believe Hamline had a much better Spanish program than it actually does.
Sanchez is currently enrolled in a 5000-level Spanish course at Hamline, but due to limited course offerings, Sanchez said she also had to take an additional class at Macalester College. It was a nuisance, she said, but worth it.
“In my class at Macalester, the level of their Spanish is higher and they are prepared. At Hamline, I don’t think people are at the same level.” Sanchez said because Hamline has too many students and too little resources in the Spanish program, it has failed to adequately prepare students.
She still plans to go to graduate school to teach Spanish, but she said she’s upset that she may enter at a lower ability level than other students. She hopes, however, that the program can improve if given the resources.
“We need new blood, new ideas, and professors with the ability to teach more contemporary and challenging courses,” she said.
Posted by msveum at December 7, 2004 11:00 AM